Saudi Arabia has arrested 17 Filipinos for attending a Halloween party at which there were men and women, the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Tuesday.
The party organisers did not have the appropriate permission to do so, but the Filipino embassy fears that the charges relate to the fact that there were men and women at the party.

The Philippine Ambassador to Riyadh, Adnan Alonto, sent a report to the foreign department explaining that a group of Saudi intelligence officers entered a venue in Riyadh where a Halloween party was being held and arrested those attending, reports Efe news.

“Saudi laws strictly prohibit unattached males and females from being seen together in public. The compound was raided after neighbours complained of loud noise,” the statement said.